As the baseball season begins and Home Run Riches makes it more fun at the Maryland Lottery, this week Executive Director John Martin gives Nestor all of the details on the changes to make Mega Millions a bigger, better game for all who love jackpots.
Nestor Aparicio and John Martin discussed the Maryland Lottery’s upcoming events and changes. John announced that a $300 million Mega Millions jackpot was won in Illinois, resetting the jackpot to $20 million. Starting April 5, Mega Millions will offer larger starting jackpots, faster growing jackpots, better odds, and no break-even prizes. The Maryland Lottery also launched a $2 Back to the Future scratch-off ticket with second chance prizes. Additionally, a $500,000 Powerball winner from Aberdeen has yet to claim their prize. Nestor highlighted the Maryland Crab Cake Tour and the Home Run Riches contest, featuring contestants from various Maryland locations.
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
Mega Millions, Maryland lottery, baseball season, home run riches, Powerball, problem gambling awareness, Maryland crab cake tour, John Martin, Costas, Toronto, Orioles, scratch off tickets, Back to the Future, second chance contest, Maryland winners.
SPEAKERS
Nestor Aparicio, John Martin
Nestor Aparicio 00:01
Welcome home. We are W, N, S, T am 1570 tassel, Baltimore. We are Baltimore positive. And it is a opening day week. Luke and I will be north of the border in Toronto, Canada, all weekend long. If you see us out on social media, that would be me up there at Sky Dome trying to have a little bit of fun. I will also be in and around the ballpark. On Monday. I’ll be down at Faith lease prior to the game, in lieu of the show. We’re just gonna have crab cakes and kind of hang out. We will be there on Wednesday doing the real thing. It is Maryland crab cake Tour presented by the Maryland lottery. I will have the magic eight ball scratches my last batch, and we’re about to home run rich riches our way into baseball season. We’ve got new Mega Millions, lots of things happening. But before we get into this segment, this weekly segment, we have with John Martin, Executive Director of all things Marilyn, lottery and gaming, I am wearing my Costas shirt today. This is my first approach after spending a day, a day and a half down, and we’re doing a lot of baseball this week, from Pete Johns last week, and all that we did there. But we lost the legend, not just in Dundalk, in crabs, crab cakes, cuisine, Dundalk, you know, my homeland, all of that. But when I had John Martin on during the big 50th anniversary. We kicked it off in front of the Costas inside, literally, that summer, and Mr. Costas was there. He always declined to come on. I’m going to write about him in a column Nestor over the weekend, when I’m in Toronto and I can stop the tears and gather my thoughts a little bit. John, welcome in. I you know, you talk about partners, vendors, locations, places, the early terminals, you know, digitizing everything. I really remember you saying to me that East Baltimore, when numbers became they called him the numbers game back in the 70s, and the lottery happened that mister Costas was one of the first places 1971 so you don’t have to look up when it is 1971 that that really was a lottery place, right? It
John Martin 02:13
is a sad day for the lottery family on a number of fronts, yes, when we began the lottery in 1973 the cost us in was was one of the very first people lining up to participate in that and they have been woven into the lottery fabric for 50 plus years, and we are offering our condolences to the entire family. And you mentioned about their their reach. You know, I don’t think it’s hyperbole to say that they have a national reputation in in in dining circles, so people know of a cost to send, and again, our condolences to the family and wish that they can find some peace through all of
Nestor Aparicio 02:58
this. Well, I tell you what, we were in with him last week. So, and every time I’m in there, I see folks playing racetracks, like the the machines and the little cage in the corner that’s been there that my dad stood in front of when he left the point and bought shrimp and brought him home to me on Friday afternoons with Mr. Thomas. So John Martin is here. You know that the lottery in this week, this is there’s so many lottery things to talk about. Let’s start with Mega Millions, because the game’s changing. We’ll get the home run riches, and it’s baseball season. John, I’m going to be in Toronto. We’re gonna do a lot of baseball in this thing. But I do want to give you a little oxygen on this, because things are changing. The jackpot was hit. It’s been, you know, tumultuous little opening day week here in the guardians and even started playing,
John Martin 03:46
we got plenty to get to Nestor. You are correct, sir. So first and for and foremost, yes, some lucky winner, I believe, the state of Illinois claimed the Mega Millions jackpot of well over $300 million this week, which means the set the counter back to $20 million but that will be very short lived, because the new and improved Mega Millions game goes on sale on after next Friday’s draw, after the April 4 draw. So starting April 5, you can buy tickets for the new and improved Mega Millions lots of things coming your way. If you’re a Mega Millions fan, you can count on larger starting jackpots. They will get reset after that date to $50 million and start faster growing jackpots, bigger average jackpots, better overall odds to win prizes, improved odds to win the jackpot and no break even prizes with an embedded multiplier. I’ll explain that in a minute. But you’re, you are guaranteed to win more than than the price of the ticket. So lots of fun, lots of excitement coming the way for a variety of Mega Millions fans. Just
Nestor Aparicio 04:55
for my wife’s sake, let me interject this, Illinois. Huh? Illinois? At. Got to got that one right? Yeah, you know what my mom would say, or miss Edie, because we are team players in Dundalk. We looked after each other in Dundalk. I mean, that’s part of the Costas tradition. My mom would say, why don’t they needed the money? You know what I mean? So if they’re gonna like that, so nice putting that out there. Yeah, there you go. John Martin is here. He’s executive director of all things Maryland lottery and gaming. Alright, let’s get the home run riches and give some oxygen to baseball season here. Lots of things going on. Ballpark opening day, next Wednesday, we’re going to be doing our thing at Fayette Lee’s the Red Sox are in town. I hope you’re not wearing red for that. You look a little Ohio State for me today, and I’m okay with that. Maybe it’s Maryland red as well. For you know, I’m from Baltimore, that’s why so but, but God has missed basketball and baseball, but it’s baseball season, and like, we’ve got the first batch of names of who Ryan mountcastle is going to make you pay soon.
John Martin 05:57
We have the lineup set. We have the lineup set. You know, opening day, everyone wants to build their lineup on the best possible foot. Going forward, we’ve got our lineup set of home run riches contestants of the game leading off, Tiffany jester from Cambridge, Maryland. Tiffany will be the contestant of the game for opening day in Toronto. She’s already won $500 and for every O’s home run hit, she’ll win an additional $500 and should one of those home runs come with the bags loaded a grand salami? Do they say that still grand salami? Sure. They say
Nestor Aparicio 06:34
that like a can of corn. Come on. Okay,
John Martin 06:38
then she will all
Nestor Aparicio 06:39
night. Don’t start me up. I’m Mick Jagger. I $5,000
John Martin 06:45
for the grand salami. So that’s a lot of fun. And betting second the next night in in or I don’t visit night or day on his evening game and in Toronto. Kelly Beauchamp from Abington, Maryland, the next Toronto game. Rudy Augustine from Parkville, Maryland, or Augustine, I don’t know how Rudy pronounces it. And to close out the Toronto series, John Townsend, the third very, very interesting of Essex. Oh,
Nestor Aparicio 07:13
see, see, this is where I’m going to love this every week. We’re going to make this shtick. When Seth comes on, we’re going to read every name on this show. We’re going to read it every week, because we’re going to go to places like Cambridge, and it’s going to give me a chance to talk about how much I like Cambridge. And I always thought of Cambridge as a place to stop and go to the bathroom 150 on the way to Ocean City. But I have hung out in Cambridge. Now. I’ve eaten great meals in Cambridge. I have watched them pull the crabs out of the CHOP tank in Cambridge. So I’m pulling for you, Cambridge. Let’s go. Not that I’m not pulling for Essex and Parkville and you know, in Abingdon. I love all of you equally. But Cambridge, let’s go Cambridge.
John Martin 07:52
Well, let’s, let’s complete the sweep here for the month of March, opening the home opener on the 31st also staying in the eastern shore from Chestertown. Lisa Bozarth is our contest of the game. So there you have it through the month of March.
Nestor Aparicio 08:05
I did the show on the pure Chester love Chester town. It’s beautiful down there. John Martin’s here it is. He is the executive director of all things Maryland is beautiful, beautiful state that we have here from sea to shining mountain and the the weather’s getting better. We got baseball going on. We got home run riches. And we’re doing events. We’re getting stuff out. What am I leaving out here? I bet we have. We had some big winners here, John, we’ve
John Martin 08:29
got, we’ve got lots to talk about before you get Do you have, do you have a favorite movie? Nestor, I know you do. Don’t disclose it yet, but hopefully in your top 10 of favorite movies. It is the 40th anniversary in 2025 of the Back to the Future franchise. Yes, it was 1985 when we first met Marty McFly. And to commemorate that, Marilyn lottery will be having, just now announced and launched this week, a $2 Back to the Future scratch off. And of course, it has
Nestor Aparicio 09:00
song in my head. Oh, man, keep going. I’m hearing I’m feeling it. I’m feeling Michael J Fox right now.
John Martin 09:07
You can go to MD lottery.com for all the details, but it is a second chance contest. You enter your non winning scratch offs into your My lottery rewards account, and we’ll have five drawings throughout the next several weeks, all with various and unique prizes offering. There will be drawings that range from a 1900 55 that’s 1955 that’s the year to which Marty McFly travels. Back in time, if you remember, in the DeLorean, do they win a DeLorean?
Nestor Aparicio 09:40
DeLorean? No, no, get
John Martin 09:43
get your own contest. Bob Barker,
Nestor Aparicio 09:46
I wanted to say on new car, you know, but like, no, no, yep, yep. I love when this shows like Oprah and you get one and you get one. I mean, when I well, you win Maryland crap cake tour, I get that feeling of you get one, but you’re, you’re not giving away a DeLorean cash. He’s your
John Martin 09:59
car. Cash prizes. You can maybe put them towards a DeLorean. I don’t know how that will work for you, but the cash prize, I’m only,
Nestor Aparicio 10:05
I’m asking, I don’t know what’s that. Can you really get a DeLorean like that? I suppose,
John Martin 10:10
I suppose some somebody on you can get anything on eBay. Alright, that’s not guaranteed to work necessarily, but someone’s probably got one, some sitting somewhere. But for 1955 $1,955 you can also win 2015 that’s 2015 that’s the year in which Doc Brown, Martin McFly and Jennifer Parker arrived to save Martin McFly Jr from being set up for crime by Griff Tannen. You can also win $2,025 2025 which is the year we’re in now, commemorating the 40th anniversary.
Nestor Aparicio 10:44
Or I like future money better, by the way, I like well, the future money is more money, right? 8888,
John Martin 10:52
8888 and that was the travel speed you may remember. You had to get to 88 miles per hour on that DeLorean before it went zoom out into the end of the future. So have some fun with it. Play responsibly. $2 scratch off ticket back to the future in stores now and watch for the second chance prizes. We’ll have the series of those in April, May, June, July, we’ll be awarding cash prizes. Alright, look,
Nestor Aparicio 11:18
I don’t want to plug another movie, but you took me in this direction. And this is a Pop Culture Program. I spent a day walking around Epcot, and I got my little mug, because my kid got me a mug from there. So I’m having, having my delicious ROFO coffee. Even this this morning, I saw a kid. This kid was 14 years old, wearing a Pulp Fiction shirt, like it was the, you know, it’s like the cover with Mrs. Mia Wallace and, you know, Travolta on it. Maybe my favorite movie that fast times a Ridgemont High. I mean, I could go a couple directions with, you know, maybe even the Wizard of Oz, or something like that. But not gone with the wind. I would say, How would a 14 year old kid know about movies like this? And I’m thinking like something like, back to the future that you and I could in speak in tongues 40 years later, about a movie that was 40 years ago, and it triggers images, pictures, the town square, the lightning, the car. It is amazing. But like movies, they’re forever. They’re eternal. You know, they are, they are. It’ll play a thing. Maybe, I don’t know, but no. And it also
John Martin 12:21
says that we are old. Yeah, it’s baseball
Nestor Aparicio 12:25
season and it’s baseball season. I got baseball in the brain, and I got things on the brain. And I know we’re still in March. We’re about to go into April. March Madness has been here as well, and I know we’ve been talking a lot about responsibility. Things are going to pick up where they’re baseball games every day, and the Orioles and the Orioles and the nationals are going to play every day. We’ll give you a little oxygen to talk a little bit more about that, because I think March Madness, certainly, with the Terps involvement, the kiss off the glass, maybe the greatest quote in history of Baltimore quotes, and I’ve heard them all. John Martin, I’ve been doing this a long time. There’s some good Baltimore quotes, some fictional Baltimore quotes. There’s all sorts of Baltimore quotes, but that kid, I’m from Baltimore, that’s why that’s pretty good, right?
John Martin 13:08
That was very good. I’m going to ignore because I don’t understand basketball, how it’s evolved in 40 years plus, on the professional level as well as the collegiate level. That seemed to be a pretty aggressive move from the top of the key to the kiss off the glass
Nestor Aparicio 13:28
confidence these days, especially to freshmen. You know,
John Martin 13:31
I’m not going to say that there may have been a little step or two along the way. That’s not my call, but that was, uh, good. It went in, and it is a buzzer beater. And having been on the other side of buzzer beaters, right, this was good to be on that side. So we wish them all well, as we’re speaking the both the men and the women in the first ever Sweet 16 at the same time. So that’s pretty interesting. I
Nestor Aparicio 14:03
think so. And I think from a level of interest in that standpoint here, I mean, even if you talk about home run riches, people playing the games. Be interesting to see how many Oriole fans there are in different places that want to play games. But sports are, you know, just even, like I said, I walked around Epcot to seeing how many hats from how many teams and how many people, my wife came in the other day wearing a red sox hat. I’m like, oh, what’s up with that? And she’s like, Yeah, yeah, we’re not shopping. Why? Well, you know, it’s baseball. Well, that’s getting a little close. She’s feeling good about their pitching, you know, I’m saying,
John Martin 14:39
well, and it’s a little DNA, right? I mean, she, she is a New Englander, yes, is she not? Yes,
Nestor Aparicio 14:45
she grows all that. Yeah, her thing was a Celtics, though she was a big, you know, in the Larry Bird chief, and you know that that DJ, that she still calls them all by their Nick now, she’s just big Celtics, 80s person, John Martin, is here in. You are a big person into sports. This is a time of year where we’re asking folks to slow your role. It’s Gambling Awareness. Ask everybody to know, know the odds of what you’re playing. We’ve been playing rather clever ads. If you’re a W, N, S T, am 1570 listener that John had trick questions for me a couple of weeks ago. But just know what you’re doing. And you know, baseball’s here. And, and John, I did say this couple years ago, I I didn’t know anyone that gambled on baseball, and I think that that’s that’s changing in a way that’s educational in a lot of ways. Because I, I think people, younger people, are thinking about this differently in regard to what they’re playing and how they’re playing. And I’m going to be at the front end to saying, no one to say when Know your limits before you get into this and have a little bit of fun with it, maybe on opening day. Well, you
John Martin 15:49
certainly want to have, have a plan, a budget. Stick with it. Don’t chase losses. Make it a social environment, if you can. You know there are a number of compelling reasons and guide guardrails and guide posts out there for people to manage their their their play responsibly, and we help people treat it as an entertainment and not as a financial risk reward proposition that that can get you into trouble and and and keep a level head about it. I mean so much, especially when you’re talking about the collegiate athletics. You know, to to take it out, on, on on players, on coaches, on referees, to really get the out of control is not, is not a good look. And that’s, you know, we hopefully, hopefully people have resources and the and the wherewithal to to make it fun and have some entertainment value and play responsibly. If you can,
Nestor Aparicio 16:47
you can always learn more at MD lottery.com it’s on the apps. It’s everywhere. Play responsibly. Problem Gambling Awareness Month, the Maryland lottery supporting problem awareness Gambling Awareness month with one click, you can get all the information that you need. Maybe it’s a lot of times we talk about this, it’s to help someone you know who may be having this problem, who needs some help and and that’s great thing as well, to to pitch in and say, Hey, watching your friends. Keep an eye on your friends as well. John winners, I know we had some big we had, like, a half a million dollar Powerball tickets sold recently, right? We have
John Martin 17:22
an all points bulletin and an APB, as they say in the in the police circles here, for a winner was yet to come forward, a $500,000 Powerball winner. We have a an add on game called double play Nestor. A few states do this. That means that you have your numbers for your Powerball play, but for an additional wager of $1 you can then replay those numbers on a second drawing that follows the main drawing. So each and every night that Powerball is drawn, and there are three nights out of the week that that is drawn, Monday, Wednesday and Saturday after the initial drawing for the big jackpot, which now is getting close to $500 million we have a second drawing after the dust sells on the first drawing, you hang on to that ticket, you have your numbers, and we’ll have another drawing. The top level jackpot, there is 10 million so it doesn’t, it doesn’t go with the main jackpot. It’s a secondary jackpot. It’s a double play on those numbers. But the second tier of that is a $500,000 fixed prize. And we have a Maryland winner at Carson’s run liquors in Aberdeen. And if you happen to have the numbers 254, 5965 and 68 and the Powerball was three. Just for for clarity, you may be the person who is the lucky recipient of $500,000 you have 182 days from the drawing, which was last week to claim that ticket. That’s pretty good chunk of change. You may want to get your affairs in order and make sure everything’s all set for you to come on down. I’ll be happy to shake your hand. We’ll take a picture of the big, oversized check, and
Nestor Aparicio 19:08
you’ll be not uncommon, right? I mean, like, literally, when something happens that people just don’t come in the next day very often, do they? It’s, it’s
John Martin 19:17
unusual. And if they do, we kind of, you know, flinch a little bit like that. They really thought this through what the impact is. Because for a lot of people, $500,000 is going to change their their routine. So make sure that you’ve got all your your financial advisors, where that your tax advisors, your cousins, who you haven’t seen in 50 years are going to come out of the woodwork. So make sure that that you’ve got all that you’re prepared for all of that, and then we’ll be more than happy to explain to you how that you can collect on your winnings. So hopefully that person will come forward
Nestor Aparicio 19:52
quite a feeling when you look down at the numbers and you you know you see it. You don’t believe it right away, and then you’re like, Okay, now. Do I have to do? Take a little time. And that’s not a bad thing either. John Martin is here, Executive Director of all things Maryland lottery and gaming as well. By the way, we sort of short shifted the other jackpot at the beginning of this thing, because the Powerball still like a half a billion dollars, right? So, but the Powerball still big. Sigh. I think I skipped the lead on that. Well,
John Martin 20:20
if people are chasing jackpots, a lot of people do you know they they don’t get into the game till it’s $500 million now the time to get in Powerball drawings again, three nights a week, Monday, Wednesday, Saturday. So depending on when you’re listening to this broadcast, you check your your MD lottery app, if you happen to have that on you on your phone, or stop by any of our 4300 retailers, most of them are more than willing to have the jackpot displayed and share with you how much it is. And again, play, play responsibly. Have some fun with it. And it’s okay to dream a little bit on what you would do with $500 million you
Nestor Aparicio 20:53
know, it’s crazy, but this morning, when I got shaped up to look real nice for this trip to Toronto, when I pull my passport out and go in and see Getty. I want to get things together that I want to be a billionaire. The Bruno Mars song came on in the playlist a little bit. And I thought about this, $484 million and how much time I would need to have to organize myself and all that. How many dreams would be changed from 30 years ago to today? Yeah. What would you do with all the money today versus a year from now, five years from now? But boy, I could dream big, couldn’t I, you know what? I mean? Oh, no. So you,
John Martin 21:27
when you were doing all of this stuff, were you trying to match your passport photo? Is that the problem? You didn’t want to have a photo like this and you looking like something
Nestor Aparicio 21:35
else. I kind of look the same, you know? I mean, I, I’ve, I haven’t changed my look in a while, maybe except for the ponytail. But, you know, they do look at me a little bit. But no, I think I’m going to be okay this time. Or I got Luke with me. You know what? I mean, I always got that rugged, handsome, you know, the, you know he, he’s never been to Canada, so this is going to be something. Oh, my goodness. Really good time here. Yeah, wow. It’s baseball season. Um, not to put the odds into this segment, but we did look up how the Orioles are like the sixth choice in 8889 and a half, I was kind of shocked that the guardians are less thought of and the Red Sox are highly thought of as well. How you feeling about the guard? I just have to give a little less preseason thing here, yes,
John Martin 22:17
last year at this time, and I don’t recall us talking about them, but we probably did. The Guardians, we were optimistically thinking we would maybe be close to 500 so they had a great start, and it kind of stayed that way, and ended up, you know, playing the Yankees in the finals for
Nestor Aparicio 22:39
then the race got hurt, even though you tried to deal them to us, first, right,
John Martin 22:42
right, yeah, after, right, after, after. The second week of the season, we lost our number one pitcher. So, yeah, I put little stock into experts. I mean, you and I know more about what’s going on than than half these chuckle heads who put the forecast out there. It doesn’t bother me. I’ll look at it again in September, and then we’ll see. You know where we are.
Nestor Aparicio 23:05
Well, it’s great to have opening day. It’s great to have baseball season. Luke and I are excited about going up to Toronto. I will be excited that next week to be at Faith. Lee’s having delicious crab cakes for game two. I mean, everybody goes to opening day. We’re going to go Wednesday, and weather is apparently going to get real nice around here. I will have scratch also the middle of the lottery, the magic eight balls. It is the end of this batch. We’re in the spring. We’re into home run riches, Mega Millions. Is changing. We got things happening out there as well as a Problem Gambling Awareness Month as well. Shout out to our friends at Costas. We began the segment. I’m not doing a lot of radio here, being in and out of the country with Luke, but our thoughts to everybody there and everybody reaching into me. We are back at Costas, doing the show in two weeks. We’re going to hold to that. We’re doing the show everywhere in the month of April. We’re going to be at Cocos. We’re going to be around. We’re going to have scratch also the Maryland lottery to give away, as we always do. Big appreciation for putting this out on the road on the Maryland crab cake tour. Cheer cheers to another baseball season and opening day, as the Great Hall of Famer Ernie Banks said, Let’s Play two. I am Nestor. We are wnst. Am 1570 Towson, Baltimore, we never stop talking Baltimore positive in two countries this week. My goodness, it’s baseball season. You.
